Whiffletree-hook.



No. 658,822. Patented Oct. 2, 1900.

m. o. ALMGUIST.

WHIFFLETREE HOOK.

(Application filedApr. '7, 1900.;

No Model.

UNITED STATES 1 PATENT OFFICE;

MARTIN 0. ALMGUIST, or LAKE ANDREW, MINNESOTA;

W H'lF FLETREE-l-lOO K.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 658,822, dated October 2, 1900'.

Application filed April 7, 1900.

To all whom it 'mcty' concern;

Be it known that I, MARTIN O; ALMGUIST, a citizen of theUnited States, residing at Lake Andrew, in the county of Kandiyohi, State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Whiffietree-Hooks; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to hooks in general, and more particularly to the class of whiffietree-hooks, one object of the invention being to provide a construction of this nature in which the hook may be opened for attachment of the tug thereto and may be then closed to prevent accidental displacement of the tug, the construction being simple and cheap of manufacture and efficient in its operation.

A further object of the invention is to provide a cheap and effective means for holding the hook in its closed position.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description.

In the drawings forming a portion of'this specification and in which like numerals of reference indicate similar parts in both views, Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the hook as applied to a-whifiletree, the hook bee ing closed and having a tug engaged there, with. Fig. Qisacentral section taken through the bill and stem of the hook and showing the parts of the hook in the opened position.

the present invention comprises, in effect, two hook-sections, one of which is adapted for attachment to the whiffietree and the other is telescopically connected therewith.

The main hook-section comprises a stem 5, at the outer end of which is formed a ring 6 of such size as to slip easily over the ferrule on the end of a whiffietree 7, the ring being held in thisposition by means of a staple 8, which is engaged over the ring and is driven into the body of thewhiffletree, as shown. At the opposite end of the stem 5 from the ring is formed a hook comprising a bight 9 and a bill 10, the bight, the bill, and the end of the stem adjacent the bight being curved to outline a semicircle, as shown. This por- Serial No. 11,955. (No model.)

tion of the structure is formed, preferably, of wrought-iron, and the ring at the end of the stem is of sufficient size to permit free movement of the hook with respect thereto for better operation under all circumstances, and the stem, at the base of the semicircular portion above mentioned, is enlarged by a pcripheral flange 11, which forms a shoulder for a purpose to be presently described.

Cooperating with the hook-section above described is a second section 12, which is substantially semicircular in form and is hollow to fit upon the semicircular portion of the first hook-section, one end of the second booksection being continued beyond the semicircle, as shown at 13, to form a finger, which when the second hook-section is drawn outwardly from the first hook-section will lie against the stem 5 to prevent access to and egress from the inclosure of the hook. When the hook-section is slid rearwardly to the opposite position, the hook is open and is in condition to have the point of the finger passed through the eye at the end of the tug, as illustrated in Fig. 1. The flange or stop 11 acts to limit the movement of the hook in a direction to open it, and in order to hold the hook in a closed position a perforation 15 is formed through the tip of the first hooksection and transversely thereof, this perforation being adapted for alinement with a perforation 15' in the second hook-section when the second hook-section is drawn outwardly to close the hook. After the perforations are thus alined a pin 16 may bepassed Referring now to the drawings, the hook of therethrough to prevent displacement of the parts. I

In practice the hook is placed on the whiffletree as illustrated and with the bight of the hook extending in the direction of the center of the Whiftletree, so that the strain of the tug upon the hook tends to draw the hook inwardly of the whiffietree instead of from the end thereof.

It will thus be seen that the present construction is simple and cheap, while at the same time being very effective, the tug being easily and quickly applied and removed, while when once applied it is held securely against accidental removal.

In practice the specific construction shown {and described may be varied and any suitable materials and proportions may be used without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is 1. A whifiletree-hook comprising a member including a stem having a ring at one end for engagement over the end of a Whiflietree and having a semicircular hook at its opposite end, a second member which is hollow and is slidably engaged over the hook of the first member, said second member being adapted to rest with its end against the stem of the first member when at one limit of its movement, and means for holding the second member in the last-named position.

2. A whiffletree-hook comprising a member including a stem having an eye at one end for engagement over a whifiietree and having a semicircular hook at the opposite end, said hook having a transverse perforation at its free end and having a stop at its opposite end, and a second and hollow member slidably engaged over the book of the first member to close the hook when at one limit of its sliding movement, said second member having also a perforation for alinement with the first-named perforation, and a pin for engagement With the perforations when in alinement to hold the members from movement with respect to each other.

In testimony whereof I hereunto set my hand, this 22d day of March, 1900, in the presence of two witnesses.

MARTIN O. ALMGUIST.

Witnesses:

A. N. ADAM, JOHN L. GUSTOFSON. 

